Delivery-wagon.



I J. s. DUNHAM: DELIVERY WAGON. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 19,1912. 1,131,045. Patent d Mar. 9, 1915.

v 8 SHEETS-SHEET l fl 42' 10 J0 55 4 0 7 if? S 6 0 WITNESSES .WMMW/ 3 M BY (v J. s. DURHAM. DELIVERY WAGON.

APPLICATION llLED SEPT. 19,1912

1,1 31,045. Patented Mar; 9, 1915' Y 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2 (I. 's. DUN HAM. DELIVERY WAGON. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 19,1912

1 ,1 3 1 ,045. V Patented M21119, 1915.

I 3 $HEETSSHEET 3- WITNESSES J5;- I WW ATTORNEY JAMES STEWARD DUNHAM, OF BIRMINGHAM,

DELIVERY-WAGOIE'.

Specification of Letters Patent.

MICHIGAN.

Patented Mar. e, 1915,

Application filed September 19, 1912. Serial No. 721,208.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JAMES Srnwnno DUN- HAM, a citizen of the United States, residing at Birmingham, in'the county of Oakland and State of Michigan, have invented a new and useful Delivery-\Vagon, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in delivery wagons.

The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of delivery wagons, and to provide a simple and comparatively inexpensive delivery wagon of strong and durable construction having an increased carrying capacity and adapted to utilize the entire space, Within the wagon either for the reception of the goods or as a Working space for the operator, and capable of affording ready access to its entire contents.

A further object of the invention is to provide a delivery wagon of this character of sufficiently light structure to be hauledby' one horse and at the same time having the carrying capacity of an ordinary two horse wagon. 1

Another object of the invention isto provide a delivery wagon having easy access to its interior working space and equipped with means for protecting the operator in entering and leaving the Wagon from dust and mud of the wheels and drip from the top of the wagon.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the construction and novel combination of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended; it being understood that various changes, in the form, proportion, size and minor details of construction, within the scope of the claims, may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of theinvcntion.

In the drawings: Figure l is a side elevation of a delivery wagon, constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. '2 is a central longitudinal central view of the same. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view on the line 33 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is ahorizontal sectional view on the line 4-4: of Fig. 3.

- Fig. 5 is a detailperspective view of the lower exterior platform or shelf. Fig. 6 is a perspective view, illustrating the construction of the foldable rear shelf or platform.

Like numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

In the accompanying drawings in which is illustrated the preferred embodiment of the invention, the body of the delivery Wagon is provided with a box or bed com posed of a bottom or floor 1 and relatively narrow vertical side and end boards 2 and 3, suitably secured to the bottom and supported at the corners by blocks 4 and also connected with the bottom by means ofinteriorly' arranged vertical bars 5. The corner blocks 4 are fitted against the inner faces of the side, and end boards 2 and 3, and the vertical bars 5, which are designed to be constructed of strap iron, or other suitable material, are provided at their upper ends with hooks 6.for engaging over the upper edges of the side and end bars, and the lower terminals of the vertical bars 5 pierce the bottom or floor l of the wagon and are threaded to receive nuts 7. The box or bed is provided at the lower face of the bottom withv transverse bars or cleats 8, extending across the bed or box and having projecting terminals preferably connected with the side boards 2 by vertical plates or bars 9, constructed of strap metal or other suitable material, and secured to the outer faces of the side boards 2 and having lower threaded. terminals piercing the ends of the transverse bars or cleats and provided with nuts 10 for engaging the lower faces of the same. The transverse bars or cleats, which support the floor or bottom, may, of course, e secured at their ends in any other, dgsired manner. Q i

The wagon body is provided at intbrvals with bows ll, constructed of suitable material and preferably enlarged or thickened at the side portions 12 to form vertical standards for supporting the side walls 13 and end walls 14 and 15 and also interiorly arranged upper and lower front and rear shelves 16. The lower ends of the sides of the bows are suitably secured to the outer faces of the side boards, and the top transverse portions of the bows are relatively thin to enable the materialto be readily bent into the proper shape, and are connected by longitudinal slats 17, designed to be constructed of bass wood, or other suitable material, and arranged at suitable intervals and supporting a top or cover 18,

constructed of canvas, or other suitable ma terial. The canvas top or cover, which is stretched over the supporting slats 1?, is preferably secured at the lower edges near the lower ends of the curved portionsof the bows by means of strips of molding or other suitable material fastened by tacks, which pierce the molding and the canvas cover and are embedded in the lowermost longitudinal slats l7. "lhe upper ends of the enlarged side portions of the bows form shoulders 19, which support the longitudi nal' slats to which the top or cover is tacked. The top or cover may, however, be secured in any other suitable manner.

The sides 13 consist of wooden panels and are suitably secured to the outer faces of the thickened side portions of the bows, and the said sides 13 are composed of front and rear sections spaced apart to form a doorway or entrance opening 20 at each side of the wagon body. The ends 1% and 15, which also consist of wooden panels, are secured to the outer edges of the end bows, and they extend from the end boards of the bed or box to the canvas top or cover, which is provided with front extension 18. The extension l8 is supported at the front edge by a short inclined how 1%. The front sections of the sides 18 are equipped with sashes 21 having transparent panes of glass, or other suitable material, and the front end 14: and the rear end 15 are also provided with sashes and having panes of glass or other transparent material. The side and end windows are adapted to admit light to the interior of the wagon body, which is also equipped at opposite sides with sliding doors A, provided with sashes '15 having panes of glass or other transparent material.

The wagon body is braced at the corners by inclined metallic bars or braces 26, con structed of strap iron, or other suitable ma terial and secured at their upper ends to the side portions of the .end bows and extend ing downwardly therefrom to the end boards 3 of the body or bed. The inclined braces 26 are provided adjacent to the up per edges of the end boards 3 with quarter bends, and the lower ends of the said braces 26 are fitted flat against the inner faces of the end boards 3 and are bolted or otherwise secured to the same. The ends of the wagon body are also braced and strengthened by transverse rods 27, piercing the thickened side portions of the end bows and suitably secured to the same. transverse bracing rods are preferably located beneath the outer terminal portions of the upper shelves l6, and while only two transverse rods 27 are shown in the drawings, it will be readily understood that any The desired number may be employed and can be conveniently located beneath the shelves.

The upper and lower interiorly arranged shelves 16, which. extend from the inner vertical edges of the front and rear sections of the sides 13 to the front and rear ends 14- and 15 to form a central. intervening working space within. the wagon body for the operator, are constructed of suitable material and are supported at intervals by transverse bars 28 preferably located at the inner and outer transverse edges and at an intermediate point adjacent to the bows of the wagon. body and mounted upon and secured to longitudinal side bars 29. The longitudinal side bars 29 to which the transverse shelf supporting bars 28 are bolted, or otherwise fastened, are fitted against the inner faces of the side portions 12 of the bows and are secured to the same by bolts or other suitable fastening devices. The shel v es are also preferably provided at their upper faces with transverse bars 30, lo" cated at the inner and. outer ends of the shelves and suitably secured to the same and to the adjacent lower transverse supporting While two shelves are shown in bars 2%. both the front and rear portions of the wagon body for supporting merchandise and other articles to be delivered, yet it will be clear that any other arrangement of shelving may, of course, be employed.

No claim is made in the present application to the construction. of the top of the wagon.

The side doors are suspended from tracks 31 by hangers 32, provided with' rollers or wheels 33 arranged to run on the tracks 31. The tracks 31 and the hangers may be of any preferred construction, and the wagon body equipped at the top above the tracks with eaves troughs 34, adapted to prevent water, snow or ice from droppingfroin the top of the wagon body onto the operator while the latter is entering or leaving the wagon body. The eaves troughs 34, which are of a length greater than the width. of the door opening 20, are constructed of sheet metal or other suitable material, and are preferably secured at their inner sides to the lowermost longitudinal slats l7. The tracks 31 are extended in advance of the entrance open ings or doorways, and the doors 24: slide for wardly in their opening movement and are guided atthe bottom by horizontal rods 35 1 arranged slightly above the plane of the lower edges of the doors and secured at their terminals to the side boards of the bed or box of the wagon body. The front ends 36 of the guide rods are bent inwardly at right angles andextend horizontally to the side boards 2 of the box or bed, and the rear ends 37 are bent downwardly to clear the lower edge of the doors and are then extended inwardly to the side boards 2..

lli

each hanger is composed The wagon body may be mounted on any preferred construction of running gear, and it is equipped at a point between the front and rear wheels 38 and 39 with a lower exterior transverse shelf or platform 40, preferably cons longitudinally of the wagon and laid upon spaced bars 41, extending across the wagon from one side to the other and supported below the bottom of the wagon body by side hangers. The hangers, which support the central exterior shelf at opposite sides of the wagon body and of spaced front and rear vertical bars 42 and a horizontal bottom connecting bar 43. The vertical hanger bars 42, which are constructed of suitable metal, are bolted or otherwise secured at'their upper ends to the side boards 2 of the box or bed, and their lower ends 44 are bent horizontally at right angles and extend beneath the horizontal supporting bar 43 from the outer edge thereof. The horizontal supporting bar, which is disposed longitudinally of the wagon, is preferably constructed of wood and extends beneath and supports the transverse bars 41 and is secured by bolts 45, orother suitable fastening devices to the inturned horizontal supporting arms or lugs of the vertical hanger bars 42. The transverse shelf or platform 40 is adapted for holding receptacles containing oil and other liquids, which are preferably carried separately from the articles contained within the wagon body, but the platform or shelf may, of course, be utilized for carrying packages of any description capable of being arranged on the same, and in order to retain the packages and other articles on the shelf or platform, the front and rear guard rails .46 are preferably employed. The guard rails consist of horizontal bars constructed of wood, or other suitable material, and fit ted against and suitably secured to the outer edges of the hanger bars at a point above the shelf or platform 40. .These horizontal bars 46 are adapted to prevent the contents of the shelf from falling off at the front and rear edges thereof, and they also operate to brace the structure. Any other suitable means maybe employed for retaining the contents of the platform or shelf on the latter.

The terminals of the transverse bars 41 extend outwardly beyond the ends of the platform or shelf 40 and support steps 47, located at the sides of the wagon body and preferably constructed of material thicker than the boards of the shelf or platform and forming shoulders at the ends of the same to prevent articles from slipping outwardly from the platform or shelf onto the steps. The steps enable'fthe operator to readily enter and leave the body of the wagon and they are also adapted to permit the operator isting of boards or pieces extending or platform, are located,

latter is provided at its rear en to stand on them while placing articles in the wagon body and when removing the same therefrom, and in order to protect the operator from mud and dust from the wheels, the wagon body is equipped with front and rear mud guards 48 and 49. The mud guards 48 and 49, which-may be constructed of any suitable material, extend longitudinally of the wagon body at opposite sides thereof, and are curved upwardly in advance and in rear of the side steps. The front mud over the'tops of the front wheels, and the rear mud guards over the rear wheels. .The lower ends of the mudguards are supported by brackets 50,

constructed of suitable material, and eachconsisting of an approximately L-shaped body portion, and an outer vertical attaching flange 51. The angular or L-shaped body portion is composed of-two arms arranged at an obtuse angle to each other, one of the arms constituting an inner attaching portion and extending across the upper face of the step 47 at the end thereof, and the other arm extending outwardly from the outer corner of the step. The lower end of the curved mud guard rests upon the outwardly extending arm of the body portion of the bracket, and the attaching flange 51, which is arranged transversely of the wagon, extends upwardly from the body portion of the bracket and is fitted against and secured to the inner face of the mud guard. The outer arms of the body portions of the brackets 50 diverge outwardly from the-ends of the steps at the outer corners thereof and they space the mud guards both laterally and longitudinally from the ends of the steps.

The mud guards are secured at their outer ends and at points intermediate of their ends to the wagon body by means of arms 52, constructed of suitable material and secured at their outer portions to the upper faces of the mud guards and having their inner terminals bent at right angles and bolted or otherwise secured to the sides of the wagon body. Any number of transverse supporting arms 52 may be employed and the latter maintain the spaced relation with thesides of the wagon body and in proper position with relation to the wheels of the vehicle.

In order to increase the carrying capacity of the wagon and enable the same to carry barrels and other large packages, which cannot be arranged within the we mud guards in with a foldable shelf composed of inner and outer sec tions 54 and 55, connected together by suit able hinges 56. The inner section 54. which extend correspondingly.

on body, the

is provided at its ends with upwardly pro- Jecting wings 57, is connected at its inner or front edge with the rear end of the bed tially horizontal position.

g memes or box of the Wagon body by means of hinges 58, provided with hinge: elements and secured to the rear end board of the box or bed. T he hinge elements are provided at the bottom with integral horizontal sup-- porting armsSO, located below the plane of the pintle's 61 of the hinges and extending rearwardly beyond the vertical plane of the same and constituting means for suporting the inner or front section of the foldable shelf in a horizontal or substan- Any other suitable means, however, may be employed for limiting the downward movement of the innor hinged sections of the shelf. The hinges 56 and are preferably provided with a common integral. leaf 62, extending across the lower or outer face of the section Coat of the rear shell and forming a strong con struction for hinging the two leaves together and with the wagon body.

the outer leaf is provided at its lower or outer face with eyes or loops 63, arranged at'the ends of the outer section 55 and receiving a chain 6-l, The chain 64:, which ex.-

tends along the outer r lower face ot'the section 55, has its terminal portions extending from the said section 55 to the sides of the wagon body, which are provided with suitable links or rings 55. The terminal portions of the chain pass through the links or rings 65 and are provided with hooks 36, which engage links of the chain for securing the outer section in its adjustment. The shelf is zulapted to be arranged, as illustrated in Fig. dot the drawings, with both of the leaves in-iabh'orizontal position, or it may be partially folded by swinging the outer leaf upwardly to the position illustrated in Fig. l of the drawings, or it may be completely folded or arranged against the rear end of the body, illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings.

No'claim made in the present case to. the construction of the package ca rier.

1. A wngon oi the class descrilized including a body provided at opposite sides with openings, hangers depending from the sides of the wagon body at the said openings, a platform located beneath the body and extending entirely across the same and supportedby thehangers, said platform being provided with spaced bars disposed longitudinally of the platform and having terminal portions projecting outwardly beyond the platform, mounted upon the projecting terminals oi the longitudinal bars, and mud guards supported at their inner adjacent ends by the said projecting terminal portions of the bars and provided at intervals with arms secured to the wagon body.

A. wagon of the class described including a body provided at opposite sides with openings, hangers depending from the sides of the body at the said openings and com posed of vertical bars provided at their lower ends with supporting arms, and horiicontal llftlS arranged upon and secured to the supporting arms, and a platform or shell extending across the wagon below the body and provided at its lower face with bars resting upon the horizontal bars of the hangers and supported by the same.

3. A wagon oi? the class described including a body provided at opposite sides with openings, a platform located below the wagon body and extending entirely across the same and having spaced projecting bars,

hangers supporting the platform, steps carried by the pro3ect1ng portions of the said bars, mud guards located in advance and in rear of the steps, and brackets secured at their inner ends to the steps and diverging outwardly therefrom, said brackets having outer attaching portions secured to the in-- nor ends of the mud guards, said brackets oiisetting the mud; guards from the steps, bothlaterally and longitudinally thereof.

A wagon ot' the class described including a body provided at opposite sides with openings, steps located below the openings of the body and connected therewith, brackets consisting of body portions diverging from the steps and having inner trans verscly' disposed attaching terminals secured to and extending across the steps, said brackets being also provided with outer transversely disposed supporting portions 100 having vertical attaching flanges, and front and rear mud guards having their inner ends arranged upon the outer supporting portions of the brackets and secured to the vertical attaching flanges thereof, said mud 105 guards being otiset from the erally and longitudinally of the diverging brackets.

In testimony, that I steps both latthe vel'iicle by claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aliixed my s1gi1a-- 110 ture in the presence of two witnesses.

JAMES STEVVARD DUNHAM.

W1 tncsses Anrnnn PECK,

'lnos. H. Conn. 

